20 Month Musings

Paprika is now 20 months old- that's getting close to two! Eek! She is keeping me quite busy and is loads of fun. Her vocabulary is now outstanding, and she makes me laugh at all the funny things she says. Her new favorite thing to say is "thank you" and "Oh, thank you MUCH!" It's really hilarious because she says it after everything now.

Paprika wants nothing to do with playgrounds and anything kid-related. Instead, when we go to the park, she wants to wander the buildings, run through the woods, and explore every inch of unknown earth. Swings and slides are way too old hat. She also dislikes being carried anywhere, and she doesn't want to sit still for a second. The many months of carrying her in slings and the Ergo has created quite an independent little person, and now she feels secure enough to run, run, run and never look back. She wants nothing more than to leave mom behind and explore on her own. She is full of personality.

Paprika has always had very set preferences about sleeping. She goes to bed late rather than early. For a year she slept in our room, but then one night it dawned on us that we were waking her up with our movement, and so we put her in her own room. I worried she would have separation anxiety. Heck, I had separation anxiety! Just the opposite, she started sleeping like a dream and loves having her own space more than I could have imagined.

Travel, on the other hand, is not her strong suit! I love travelling and had all these dreams about toting Paprika around the world, and her racking up a whole collection of Passport stamps by the age of five. The reality is that she loves her bed, only her bed, and will not sleep anywhere else but her bed. When Mr. Mustard was working in Chicago last year for Harpo, I travelled quite a bit with her there and each visit got worse. I have also taken Paprika to Indiana quite a few times since her birth. Each time the sleeping situation has worsened. Short of dismantling her bed and bringing it with us, I don't know what to do.


We are supposed to go to Tom and Ann's wedding soon, and I'm just imagining how difficult it will be with this incredibly headstrong toddler- the type of toddler who can go 26 hours straight without sleeping. Not to mention that Mr. Mustard and I are really itching to do some travelling- back to Maine and New Hampshire, and maybe somewhere more exotic soon. What to do? What to do?

On a lighter note, these photos were taken at the Go Kart Race Track last weekend. Paprika loves it there, and so does Mr. Mustard. Paprika is addicted to anything having to do with cars and driving. She is definitely her father's daughter!